


New Challenger Approaching!

by kyokudokansou



Category: So Nyuh Shi Dae | Girls' Generation
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-22
Updated: 2015-07-22
Packaged: 2018-04-10 14:54:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,090
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4396199
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kyokudokansou/pseuds/kyokudokansou
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sunny didn’t like to claim many superficial victories, but this, just this, was her weakness.</p><p>In which Sunny takes Super Smash Bros entirely too seriously.</p>
            </blockquote>





	New Challenger Approaching!

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this based on this prompt I found on tumblr: "Fam jam AUs: the weekly super smash bros/mario kart house tournament and how come it’s always those two battling for the top spot," which I more or less followed.
> 
> Basically still trying to figure out what to do with my other fic so I needed something else to write in the meantime now that school is over and I have free time.

_Taunt first, as always._

Sunny tightened her grip on the controller and narrowed her eyes. Slowly, she could feel the surrounding music and voices disappearing as she focused on the TV screen.

_Jump, double jump, side B._

She really shouldn’t care this much, she knew, and maybe she was a little embarrassed to show that she did. She had, after all, come to be known around campus as that one computer science senior whom everybody would always look for advice because she gave this air of general zen and sobriety. The latter, she reckoned, _could be_ because she handled her soju better than anybody else she knew.

_Down A, land, sharp up A…_

But this was different. This wasn’t consoling her drunk roommate at four in the morning or spending hours helping Amber with her Python homework. This wasn’t girls’ night out, finals' week, or any old party.

No. This was the third saturday of the month, which meant too many people crammed into the common room of the 4th floor of her dorm building. The rustle of bags of chips and the popping of beer cans being opened, coupled with awes and oohs directed at the TV screen could be heard from even the floor below. And that could only mean one thing.

_Up A, jump, up B, steer it nice and easy aaaaaaaand…_

“Oh, fuck.”

_Right on target_. _Goodbye, Taeyeon._

“ _GAAAAME_ _._ ”

“You know, you had me worried Taeyeon, but it looks like your Megaman game just isn’t cutting it.”

“Shove it, Sunny. You know if I had been playing Kirby, you would’ve been dead.”

“Yeah, but you weren’t. So, sorry. Hand the controller to Hyo. So the real tournament can actually begin,” she flashed a cheesy smile to her former competitor.

“Unbelievable,” Taeyeon dropped her controller and left towards the snack table.

She wasn’t wrong, actually, and Sunny knew that. _Had_ she used Kirby, that would’ve been a much different fight indeed. But that was Taeyeon’s problem, Sunny knew: she never stuck to her main. She wanted to become decently proficient at every character, which gave Sunny a significant edge whenever she wasn’t faced with Taeyeon’s famous and deadly blue Kirby.

But with that out of the way, Sunny knew she had a clear way to number one, yet again. Hyoyeon and Yuri were good, and Krystal’s Zero Suit Samus gave her more trouble than she ever cared to admit, but neither of them were as good as Taeyeon. And she had just eliminated her. The Bimonthly Super Smash Bros Tournament Champion title would remain hers for the third consecutive time. She didn’t like to claim many superficial victories outside of her grades, but this, just this, was her weakness.

She handed her own controller over to Jackson, who high-fived her (they were killer whenever they teamed up for 2v2’s), and took her half-finished beer to a free chair near the window, waiting for her next turn. It would be a while. April was usually a pretty relaxed month for everybody, and so the turnout had been large. 24 hopefuls total, down to 13 now that Taeyeon was out. Sunny had played against most of them, and half-heartedly studied the playing patterns of those whom she hadn’t. She wasn’t too worried. Playing this game came as natural to her as coding did. The basics are all there, laid out in front of you, all you have to do is take them and work your way in and out of whatever problem lies in front of you. If you run into something (or somebody) unexpected, as long as you are patient and remember those basics, you come out victorious in the end. But it wasn’t all natural talent, even she knew that. Her daily “casual” Smash hour was in reality just as competitive as these tournaments were for her. She knew that nobody, except for maybe Taeyeon, played this game as much as she did. And the difference showed.

Tiffany, naturally, lost in the first round. She only played this game during these tournaments, and whenever Taeyeon got tired of playing alone in their dorm. Sunny found it endearing that Tiffany would want to even be part of the tournaments. It’s not like it was mandatory to play. But for some reason or another, Tiffany would always play, always as Jigglypuff, and would always be eliminated right away. Still, the mere action of being a part of the festivities, with her roommate and best friend, seemed to bring so much joy to her, and for that reason Sunny had always been very fond of her. Plus, hardly anybody complained; it was an easy win, after all. Sunny always felt bad whenever she got pitted against her, she really did.

But not enough to let her win, of course.

A loud cheer brought Jackson to the ground, Hyoyeon to her feet, and Sunny’s palm to her face. But she couldn’t hold back the laughter. Yeah, his Falco didn’t deliver nearly as well when solo, and Hyoyeon’s Sheik is a force to be reckoned with. Specially after she had a couple of beers. Sunny often wondered how that was even possible.

“Finally, a smile. You look like you’re ready to kill someone.”

Sunny rolled her eyes, smiling. “Hey there, Soojung.”

Krystal’s expression switched unamused at the sound of her Korean name, Sunny grinned.

“Don’t call me that. Anyway, did you see my game against your roommate? I didn’t lose a single life.”

“Yeah, I was watching. Good stuff, Krys. Though Sooyoung’s small time. Yuri spared no expense at wiping the floor with you on round two.”

The taller girl frowned, but sighed in resignation. She plopped on the chair next to Sunny, and sipped at her beer.

“Hey, you’re underaged, stop drinking that,” Sunny said, taking the can from Krystal.

“Seriously?” Krystal responded, eyebrows high.

Sunny fake-thought about it for a second, and returned the can to the girl’s still-open hand.

“Of course not, Soojung. Have you been playing a lot lately?”

“Seriously, stop calling me that,” Krystal repeated, taking a bigger sip of her beer, clearly holding back a grimace. _C_ _ute._

“But,” she said, in a sudden tone of amusement, “now that you mention it. No, I haven’t been. My older sister’s visiting, so I’ve been hanging out with her.”

“Oh, I didn’t know you had a sister. Does she actually drink beer?” Sunny played, signaling at Krystal’s barely empty can.

Krystal glared at Sunny and, without breaking eye contact, took a long swig from the can.

“Wow, so grown up,” Sunny teased, cocking an eyebrow.

“Anyway,” Krystal ignored her. She shivered a little bit at the taste of the alcohol, not being able to hide it. “She’s here tonight, actually.”

“Oh, cool. You should introduce us. I’d like to see if good looks run in the family.”

Krystal scoffed, and and scanned the room for her sister.

“Yo, Sunny, you’re up!”

“Oh, I’ll be back, boo, it’s my turn. Don’t get too drunk,” Sunny hopped to her feet, messed with Krystal’s hair, and headed towards the crowd of people near the TV. Her opponent was sitting on the floor, Wii Fit Trainer already chosen, looking up at her with a smirk.

“Alright, Yul, Let’s do this.”

“READYYYY? _GO!_ ”

_Taunt first, as always._

~~~~~~~~~

“Alright everyone, final round! Gather ‘round!” slurred a clearly drunk Jackson.

Sunny downed the rest of her beer and and sauntered near the TV where everybody’s attention centered. Half in the spirit of theatrics, she cracked her knuckles and rolled her neck to get rid of non-existent knots as she approached Jackson's left side. She got a number of inebriated cheers and booing out of that.

“On the this here corner, we have the three-time consecutive holder of the champion title, a girl who is as short as her main,” Jackson said, getting laughs all around. Sunny pouted, and threw a lazy punch at his arm. “The indestructible queen, Lee Soonkyu!”

“Oi! Don’t call me that!” Laughter and cheering mixed with clapping as Sunny snatched the controller away from his hands.

“And on the other corner. A complete underdog, an unknown! Like seriously, unlike anybody I’ve met before. She literally doesn’t even go here!” The crowd laughed knowingly. Sunny laughed along, but did not actually know who he was referring to, nor she could manage find her opponent in the lot. All the usual suspects had been eliminated. Who was left?

“But don’t let that, nor her startling good looks fool you, folks. I haven’t seen such a strong Peach main since Taeyeon decided she was a Peach main two months ago!” Again everyone laughed, but Sunny could still not figure out who she was up against. Peach is not a very common main, she would have noticed if someone played her frequently. Right?

“Coming all the way from sunny San Francisco, the admittedly better player in the Jung family, Jessicaaaaaaaa Sooyeon Jung!”

_Jung family?_

“Fuck off, Jackson!” Krystal protested from the other side of the circle, earning more laughs.

“It’s okay, Krys, I beat him so fast before he probably can’t even remember it.”

Sunny whipped her head across from Jackson, where a girl just slightly taller than her had been standing.

“Hey, I’m Jessica, nice to meet you,” the girl said, still laughing with the crowd. She extended her hand at Sunny.

Donned in a simple white t-shirt and a flannel tied around the waist of light blue skinny jeans, the dark-blonde did not look much like Krystal’s sister and could have been the world’s most unassuming Smash Bros player, Sunny thought. _At least_ my _appearances match the role._

Sunny took the soft, manicured hand and shook it, maybe for a moment too long. “Sunny. Pleased to meet you. Are you ready?”

Jessica smiled and took the other controller from Jackson before looking at Sunny again.

“Of course, let’s see if all the stories Krystal has about you are true.”

Sunny felt a chill run down her back as Jessica took a seat on the floor, choosing her character. Peach, no change of skin. _Interesting_. She quickly composed herself, though, remember her usual strategy: patience. Jessica had been unassuming to the point where Sunny had missed all of her matches, somehow. But what confused Sunny the most was not that she failed to notice her playing, but that she somehow failed to notice her _looks_.

_Damn_ , she thought. _So it does run in the family_.

She took a seat next to Jessica and inhaled deeply, as quietly as she could manage. _Never show any fear_. She wasn’t afraid. Not of the prospect of Jessica beating her, anyway. That was an independent factor to anything else going on around her. And like another piece of the problem that needed an extra line or two of code to get past from, she’d deal with it how she knew best. As people took their seats around them, she turned to look at Krystal, raising an eyebrow as high as she could manage. Krystal just shrugged, with an infuriating smirk on her face. Alright, Jung, it’s on.

“ _READYYYYY?_ ”

Sunny tightened her grip on the controller and narrowed her eyes. _How good could she be?_

“ _GO!_ ”

~~~~~~~~~

“ _SUDDEN DEATH!_ ”

There were a number of non-academic things Sunny learned in university. She learned, for example, not to judge a book by its cover. People came from all sorts of backgrounds and had all sorts of stories to make up the person they had become. In high school, Sunny had always felt like the oddball next to all those preppy, pretty, tall rich girls she had class with (funny how she ended up becoming close friends and eventually rooming with one of them in university). Higher education settings taught her that she was far from being the oddest of the bunch, and the realisation brought her a strong sense of humility. By extension, this had taught her not to take anything for granted. There was always something new to be learned and to be appreciated, so being overconfident was more of a disservice than a helpful social tool.

So, knowing all of this, Sunny questioned internally, how is it that she let this match, of all, get to this point? She couldn’t lie to herself: she bit the bait that was Jessica’s demeanor. Even the other girl’s initial playing style had been awkward, with too many moves and not enough precision. Had that been Jessica’s plan all along? To have Sunny believe she had it in the bag? Sunny didn’t know. All she knew is that halfway through the match, her hands started sweating as she saw her damage meter steadily rise. It may not have been obvious to the majority of the people watching, but to a seasoned player like herself, it was pretty clear that she was losing control of the match.

But _now_ it was obvious to everyone that Jessica was good at this. Too good.

Before sudden death began, Sunny stole a quick glance at Jessica, who happened to be looking her way as well. Jessica mouthed a _phew_ at her and wiped her hands on her jeans like this was the most casual match in the planet. _How the hell does she do that?_ Composure was something that came naturally to Sunny, and now she felt like the least composed person in the room. All in light of a girl, this good-looking girl who seems to be having a walk in the park with her.

Sunny managed a smile before turning her attention to the match.

Sudden death was a little bit like penalty kicks in football, Sunny always thought. It was more about getting in a few lucky shots against the enemy player than about actual skill. But, also like in football, sudden death came when both players failed to establish dominance over the other. It was, if anything, more of a form of punishment than a way to settle things. But Sunny had to deal with it. She couldn’t very well ask for a rematch before the _match_ was even over. Taking a shaky breath (she didn’t even bother hiding it), she readied herself.

“ _GO!_ ”

Things only got worse when the bob-ombs started falling all over the stage, and a simple misstep would send you flying into your pixelated doom. Sunny’s main was fast on land and very agile in the air, with a good amount of ranged moves. This, she had over Jessica. Peach, however, had the very useful ability to float away from danger whenever it was needed, a skill which Jessica was taking full advantage of. But Sunny knew she wouldn’t opt for evasiveness forever. No, Jessica had been too aggressive of a player from the start, skilled and ambitious. But ambition (and even skill) could easily get you killed in sudden death. If she played her cards right, Sunny could use this in her favour.

She sent her ranged _up B_ attack whilst Jessica’s Peach floated closer to the stage. She failed to notice the incoming projectile, and ended up getting hit straight by Sunny’s move, sending her flying a good distance. Oohs came from all directions as Jessica barely managed to return to the stage. The bob-ombs had temporarily stopped falling, but they would soon resume. Sunny had to act now. She dashed across the stage and delivered a few blows, which Jessica blocked using her shield, sliding out of the way afterwards. This carried on for a few more seconds before Sunny made up her mind to try something bold. People often underestimated her main as a ranged character, and there was one move that no one would never dare to make in sudden death, least of all against a player like Jessica.

Sunny focused again, blocking out all sound around her.

_Jump, up B._

Jessica jumped, getting ready to float away for the next bob-omb raid.

_Steer it, nice and easy._

The stage’s camera zooms out, flashes on the upper part of the screen alerted of the incoming storm.

_Aaaaaaaaaaand._

The first bob-ombs fell.

_Right on target. Goodbye Jessica._

But just as Sunny made contact with Jessica, a lonely bob-omb that she hadn’t seen landed at the epicenter of Sunny’s attack, sending them both flying in opposite directions, both seemingly dying at the same time. _No._

The screen went dark, somebody had won. Everyone was silent.

“ _Winner iiiiiis: Peach!_ ”

Gasps, coupled with numerous oh-shits, were followed by a round of applause.

“I can’t believe it! We have a new champion! Give us a bow Jessica!” Jackson roared.

Jessica stood up and did as told, wiping more sweat from her hands on her jeans in the process.

“Sorry, Sunny, nothing much can be done after that,” Jackson said, drunkenly apologetic.

“I know, there’s nothing I want to be done. She won,” Sunny was everything but a sore loser.

Jessica turned to her and held her hand out again, after vigorously wiping the remainder of the sweat away.

“Amazing game. You totally deserved to win, by the way. I saw what you were doing, I would’ve been totally fucked had that bob-omb not happened,” Jessica said, voice recovering from the adrenaline rush.

“No way, I never saw you coming at all. I was barely able to hold my own,” Sunny responded. “You surprised me, in more ways than one.”

Krystal hugged her sister from behind, falling over from maybe one too many beers, and stuck her tongue out at Sunny.

“Nice game, _Ssssssssssssoonkyu_.”

“Shut it, Soojung. Go get some water and lay down,” Jessica ordered.

“Traitor,” Krystal slurred, letting go of her sister, frowning, and wobbling away.

Sunny chuckled amusedly at Krystal, before turning to Jessica, who was looking at her with that cool, inviting smile. Sunny swallowed. _Oh, what the hell._

“Well, there _is_ one way in which we could decide which of us is the strongest out of the two, I think, once and for all,” Sunny said, walking towards the snack table. Jessica cocked an eyebrow.

Sliding a soju glass over to Jessica, she opened up a new bottle and began pouring some in each of their glasses. Jessica laughed, looking impressed.

“Cheers,” Sunny offered.

“Cheers,” Jessica answered.

Sunny did reckon that she handled her soju better than anyone else she knew. But then again, she also reckoned she was the best Super Smash Bros player she knew. The difference between that and drinking with Jessica was pretty clear to her, though: There didn’t have to be a loser.

She really just hoped Krystal would forgive her.


End file.
